We canât afford the energy transition? Next time you hear that from someone, perhaps you can show them this. Sverre Alvik at DNV GL explains that, according to their latest Energy Transition Outlook, although annual global energy expenditure will have to increase from $4.6tn in 2017 to $5.5tn in 2050, its share of growing world GDP will almost halve from 3.6% to 1.9%. Thatâs because continuing energy efficiency gains are making sure that total global energy costs are growing more slowly that global wealth. The difference is big enough such that peak energy will happen as soon as 2030, when global primary energy use will start to reduce as energy intensity improvements exceed the sum of population and economic growth. Alvik sets out whatâs included in their strict definition of âtotal energy costsâ, noting that even if itâs extended to include other things, like subsidies, the effect on the totals is too small to change the conclusions. So if the transition is not happening fast enough, the savings described here can be deployed to speed it up and meet the Paris goals.
It is not too good to be true, it is the economic reality that lies ahead of us. The energy transition facing us in the coming decades is an affordable one. In fact, the future energy system is not only affordable, it is cheaper than the energy system we have today. And this creates an opportunity to invest more to achieve the future we want.
Let me be more precise: in just one generation, humanity will be spending a much lower share of its GDP on energy than it does today. The main reason is not energy prices, but energy efficiency. Whether you believe in the phenomenon of peak energy, as DNV GL does, or just increased efficiency, the conclusion is the same, and it is robust.
Affordability is reward enough, but there is an even more important win â we are heading towards a decarbonised energy future. But do not pop the champagne yet. Our Energy Transition Outlook (ref. 1) outlines the most likely future as DNV GL sees it. The energy transition, modelled to the best of our ability, is far too slow; we are not on track for a Paris-compliant future.
Some of the savings that therefore accrue from a much more efficient energy system need to be ploughed into speeding things up, investing in R&D, technology support, policy incentives and other activities increasing the pace of the transition. And even if society does invest and achieve Paris ambitions, the transition is affordable, purely in energy economic terms. The stakes beyond energy economics are of course far larger; the costs of runaway global warming are close to incalculable.
Total Energy Expenditures: whatâs included?
What should count as âenergy expendituresâ is open to debate. DNV GLâs Energy Transition Outlook uses a strict definition, including only fossil-fuel extraction, refinement and conversion, installation and operation of renewable energy plants, and all costs incurred by the power sector. The definition could have been extended with energy efficiency measures, energy transport costs, and energy support and subsidies. Using our definition, present expenditures are at 4.6 trn USD annually, and will grow in absolute terms to 5.6 trn USD annually in 2050, as illustrated in Figure 1 (above).
Unit costs of energy will rise slowly
There are different views of the unit costs of energy going forward. Renewable energy production will inevitably be cheaper, while grid complexity increases and will be more expensive. Fossil energy extraction is helped by technology improvements, but is also moving to more challenging conditions. Without going into details, it is likely that the relative costs of a unit of energy will stay within the same range as today. On a global accumulated level, DNV GL figures show average energy costs slowly increasing from 8 to 10 USD/GJ over the next 30 years.
…but global GDP will rise much faster
But the world economy is growing at a much faster speed than energy expenditures. With an average expected growth in global GDP of 2.6% per year the global economy will be 130% larger than it is today. Illustrated in Figure 2 (below), this is a story about affordability.
Would this conclusion change if we included costs that are excluded from our energy expenditure definitions? No. The costs would add to the absolute costs and percentages, e.g. fossil fuel subsidies today are in the range of 400 bn USD (ref. 2), renewable subsidies at 150 bn USD (ref. 2), and energy efficiency costs at 240 bn USD (ref. 3). The first is likely to decrease the coming decades, the two latter to increase, but the change in the figures will remain too small to alter the overall conclusion.
Energy Efficiency and Peak Energy are the key
The overarching driver of affordability is energy efficiency. This is best illustrated as improvement in global energy intensity – the global primary energy consumption per unit of GDP. Energy intensity has improved 1.6% per year over the last decades. With increased electrification and more efficient energy end use in all sectors and all regions, we expect global energy intensity reduction to be 2.5% per year on average towards 2050.
The shift gives us the watershed moment of peak energy, when humanity â in spite of population and economic growth and great improvements in energy access for poorer populations â will start to use less energy (ref. 4).
The main reason for the affordable transition is the reduction – both absolute and relative to economic growth â in global energy use, not changes in energy costs.
Enforce specific decarbonisation targets? Itâs still affordable
The market, left to its own devices, tends to be short-sighted. Unless forced by rules and regulations, most energy developments are economically rational in the short term. What if we forced the energy system to achieve Paris ambitions, would this be costly? Yes and no.
Various references exist on the cost of achieving Paris ambitions. Most of them also include the benefits of reducing climate change damages. However, if we confine ourselves narrowly just to the extra costs involved in decarbonising the energy system, that could add up to an additional annual cost of 0.4-0.8% of GDP (ref. 5). If we add this number to the GDP share for energy expenditures shown in Figure 2, we see that the transition is still affordable, with a clear margin.
The conclusion that the energy transition is affordable is valid even without considering the benefits of avoiding the dangerous consequences of global warming, which obviously are compelling.
Something for the COP 25 negotiators to bear in mind!
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Sverre Alvik is Energy Transition programme director, DNV GL
This article is published with permission
References:
- Energy Transition Outlook, A global and regional forecast to 2050, DNV GL, 2019. Also the source of all other figures not referenced too specifically.
- World Energy Outlook, International Energy Agency, 2019Energy Efficiency, International Energy Agency, 2019
- Energy Efficiency, International Energy Agency, 2019
- Energy efficiency, and why global energy demand is likely to level off in the next two decades, DNV GL Feature Article, May 2018
- Better energy, Greater prosperity. Energy Transitions Commission, April 2017
Bob Cherba says
If the energy transition is so affordable, why is it that the countries/states farthest along in the transition have the highest costs of electricity?